DarkSim

Both ReMixer and ReMix are Swole here, with this one clocking in at an absolutely hench 10:48! What a wild ride that was. Funnily enough, the intro starts out quite weakly, with the stiff solo piano not offering much emotion beyond the writing, and although the flute sounded nice when it came in, the obviously-fake vibrato wasn't selling me. As soon as the guitar kicks things off though, I had that sort of 'gotcha!' moment, where I realised it's going to be a fun one. Mixing a track this long is always going to be a nightmare, but I think you've done a decent job. There are plenty of points where it could be better, and some parts where the lows are muddying things up significantly (1:14, 3:02, 3:25 for example). Given the length of the track though, I'm willing to overlook the odd dodgy blast of low-end. My favourite part is the transition between "Suck a Sage" and "Going Up" at 2:11, with that ascending bass into the synth line from Turtles. I actually laughed out loud with satisfaction there, it's genius. Love the organ in that section as well. The energy levels are pretty unrelenting from 1:14 to 5:49, where we get some really loud vocal samples "RUN NINJA, RUN NINJA RUN!". I think these perfectly serve to highlight the overall mixing imbalance, as they sound so clear and present in comparison to the rest of the mix. Dropping the volume of those samples would lessen this effect, or maybe filtering/downsampling them in such a way as to sound more cohesive could have been an idea. The big crescendo at 7:26-7:50 sounds great from an arrangement perspective, but it's really pushing it on the low end and getting very muddy. Again, I'm giving it a pass because of the length of the track, but this is the most egregious part of the mix for me. Mercifully, the last 3 minutes are at a slower pace, allowing us to wind down somewhat from the tour de force we just experienced. It bookends nicely with the piano and flute from the beginning, reminding us that, yes, that is where we started 10 minutes ago! I think this is a great example of being creative with some fairly basic sound design, and using the energy and ambition of the arrangement to carry it through. The level of technique on show is just about good enough to pull it off, and while the mixing isn't perfect, it was a hugely enjoyable listen. YES

Ice Cap Zone has been done to death, but this exhumes, assembles and reanimates it as never before. I've said before how much I love Machinarium's soundtrack, and Tomas Dvorak's compositions for that game have a wonderful, rich texture and timbre to the sound design that mean you can almost touch the sounds. What you've managed to accomplish with this Ice Cap remix approaches Dvorak's work on Machinarium, and that's a massive achievement. The metallic resonance on the lead in particular from 0:32 is extremely reminiscent, but also the bass sounds, and the tinny, granular percussion. I've listened to this 3 or 4 times now, and I do enjoy it very much from an academic point of view. It's sort of the opposite to a regular Ice Cap mix that might be enjoyed for the bouncy beat and catchy melody. Here, the enjoyment lies in the sound design, so if you're more of a producer than a listener, there's a lot to appreciate here. YES

Awesome take on a great source tune! No problem with the arrangement here, and I love the guitar solos. I watched the video of you guys performing this, and you're really getting into the spirit with those outfits! So, my only issues with this are the mixing. To begin with, the percussion doesn't sound like a cohesive unit. The hi-hat is panned too far left and becomes distracting after a while. The snare also has a large amount of low reverb on it that makes it sound a little boomy, and slightly out of tune. It's lacking high-end too, which makes it sound like it's in the next room, and not adjacent to the rest of the elements. Also, compared to the live performances, the percussion is very rigid, and could use a little more humanising. The synth sounds are varied, however I'm not sure the mixing is accounting for this, and some patches sound louder than others. The female choir sound from 1:44-2:11 sounds good, however the pad (might even be the same choir but octaves lower) from 0:43-1:11 is dominating the low-mids and contributing to the overall lack of cohesion. The track overall seems to be lacking highs, and it sounds like your bass guitar may have some excessive reverb on it, particularly towards the end (2:59 onwards sounds very suspect). I can see from the video that everything was recorded separately, so I'm sure you'll be able to have another go at the mixing, and hopefully address the major issues here. The must-fixes are the cohesion of the percussion, the mixing of the synth, and the boominess of the snare and bass. I think once those are addressed, you'll see a huge difference in quality. NO (resubmit)

The opening brass and synth is a good combo, but I'm not enjoying the very loud and bassy sea effects. They definitely need some filtering on the low end, and some more presence in the highs wouldn't go amiss either. When things start to ramp up at 1:05, the tempo increase is a cool choice. It can be an effective tool to add urgency, and I think you've accomplished that here. The switch to the supersaw at 1:18 was good, and the kick/bass combo is nice and punchy here. Unfortunately, the claps are lost in the saw, and the hats only barely noticeable. You'll need to find some space for those in the frequency spectrum, but if it's too difficult to make space just in that domain, you can try some light panning as well in the stereo space to separate things a little. The break section slows the tempo back down, and I like the build better than the intro now that the sea effects aren't 'muddying the waters', so to speak. The tempo increase into the final chorus could have been handled better, and the final chorus is just a copy/paste of the first one, which is anticlimactic for the big finish. Try having another layer in the background like a subtle pad, just to bolster the impact of the finale. Would a little of that brass from the intro work, even? I like the way you're experimenting with tempo in this one. There are 4(!) tempo changes, and I think some more intricate transitions/builds to highlight those would really set this one off. The SFX in the intro were very overpowering, albeit a good idea, and the percussion needs to be mixed much cleaner. Additionally, it'd be nice to have some richer sound design for the lead saws (tricky, I know), and a bigger impact for the final chorus. There's a bridge section in the original that would be awesome to use in this as well, as the chords are a little darker. Could be an easy way to give more of a release for the final chorus, if you use that bridge somehow. NO (resubmit)

In agreement with the other J's on this one. The intro starts with real promise, but ultimately the impact of the track fails to deliver due to the mushy mixing and relentless lead synth sounds. This style of Eurodance seems like it's easy to make, and to an extent it is, but the majority of the work that goes into the real bangers of the genre is in the production. I think overall advice to you guys as producers is to focus on techniques that will make your mixes clean, retaining some dynamics, and variation within the repetitive structures, such as switching up leads and paying attention to sound design. Once you've got a good understanding of how to make mixes with good, clean production, you'll have a baseline to experiment with arrangements and more advanced techniques. That foundation needs to be there first and foremost. NO

Not much more to say from me that hasn't been said. I love the original, I love what you've done with it here, and for the first 2 minutes I was really into it. I was excited to hear where it went in the second half of the arrangement, after the first run-through of the source melody was presented almost exactly as expected (albeit with an epic sound upgrade). Hearing an exact copy of the first run-through was a real disappointment, and the lack of any differentiation in sequencing or automation between the two parts made it stand out as a very obvious copy-paste at that. The final fade-out would be OK if the rest of the piece wasn't just repeated already. This arrangement is like a YouTube video of the source, that loops twice and then fades out at the start of the third one. Do this piece some justice and add some variation to the arrangement, and it'll be a cracker. NO (resubmit)

Feels very cover-like for the first 3 minutes, as the instrumentation is similar, and the brassy synth lead you've got is super thin. The combo of that with the high bass notes does sound a little odd to my ear, but I wouldn't say out of tune. Is there some kind of effect on the bass sample that doesn't transpose too well at those frequencies? Some kind of pitchbend or vibrato artifact from the pluck? Regardless, there's very little original material in the first 3 minutes, and it seems like a decent cover, albeit without a significant sound palette upgrade. There's some soloing and riffing on the source breakdown from 3:08, then things get much more interesting after 3:34. The retro brass-synth lead with the reverb sounds great by itself here, then the big snare hits and piano build up the sound, and when the bass comes back in at 4:10 it's perfectly implemented. Then we get a big blow, and a couple of false endings, before a bit of an experimental actual ending. I am getting a little crackly echo in my left ear from those snare hits during the build (3:47 onwards), is that intentional? I think the track sounds really cohesive as a whole, in terms of instrumentation, although there are definite question marks over the initial lead. Additionally, does the overall cohesiveness outweigh any reservations about the sounds themselves? I think for the most part, the sounds used are absolutely fine. The brassy lead from 0:50-2:30 is my biggest issue - it's so exposed and just doesn't have enough going for it to carry the lead. The square wave at 2:55 is just that, and is pretty thin itself, but does have some nice attention to vibrato, and it's in a break section with some nice pads and stabs backing it up. It's OK for a solo instrument, but I wouldn't mind something with more meat to it. Tough one to call for me. I'm normally happy with tracks that stick close to the source for the first half and then do their own thing in the second, but the second half of this is so much better than the first, I'd be inclined to say have another crack at the first half of this. Chop out some unnecessary repetition, upgrade that brass lead, and sort out some of those high bass notes that sound a bit strange. In addition, maybe reconsider the ending - would the part from 5:00 work as an intro, even? It's a very close call, and I did enjoy this one a lot. Hopefully you can make a few adjustments and send it back over, as I'd love to hear it again. NO (resubmit)

You know, I just completed Horizon: Zero Dawn last week, and thoroughly enjoyed it. Despite it being so fresh in my memory though, I don't recall any of the music! Aloy's theme is very fitting though, a powerful and emotive piece, and the female vocal melody that doesn't use words helps to give it a timeless, tribal feel. Anyway, enough about the source, on to the remix... Source melody is presented immediately, with some tranquil bells, and there's a hint of what's to come with the robotic synth filtering in, and pulsating bass. 0:20 cements the cyberpunk/dark synthwave vibe, and I gotta say, I love the synth choices and the mixing is pretty clean, but the mastering is super quiet. I had to turn my volume up considerably to match my usual listening volume. Melody is handled by a different synth, then there's a break with the B section, and a huge build to some monstrous synth work at 1:30. Like a bunch of teenagers broke into a Cauldron and drank some Thunderjaw blood. The break at 1:56 is a welcome one, again with some cool sound design. The glitchy Tallneck effects are a nice touch, and handled just well enough so that they sound slightly uncomfortable, but not so much that the high frequencies are piercing my ear drums. There's another build and then a really nice distorted arp at 2:50 that leads into the final chorus. We finish with the same instrumentation as the intro to bookend the track, and some beautiful reverb. Throughout the track we're treated to some gorgeous sound design, from those soft, sweet bells to that snarling arp and screeching machine SFX. The mixing doesn't muddy any of the detail here, I just wish the master was louder. I'm surprised there's so much headroom left on the track, given the quality of the mixing here. I think a conditional vote is warranted just to bump it up at least 6dB, but otherwise I've no complaints at all on this one. Fantastic stuff, and great to see Horizon games getting some love here on OCR! CONDITIONAL on overall volume

Good fun as usual from the Pixel Pirates, and this time the arrangement backs up the energy levels, and saves the best chorus for last. The triplet section is a really cool addition, and there's a couple of breaks in there to let us catch our breath. No complaints on that front! The production is where I'd disagree with Emu - particularly in the big chorus sections. I can hear a distracting crackle from a percussion element, mostly in the left ear. I can't identify what it is, as the mix is so busy at those points, but it was enough to make me take my headphones off because I thought it was something IRL and doesn't sound like it should be in the mix at all. It's possibly a compression artifact, or a cymbal that doesn't have correct reverb applied - it sounds very dry. I also think proph is right about the saw at 0:41 - it lacks presence as it feels like it's mixed for the full sound, however it also lacks highs when the full sound does come in! It'd be much better to have more mid presence in the build and then more highs in the chorus. The overall balance feels lopsided too - heavy bass/sub presence below 100Hz, and very little above 11kHz leaves it feeling unnecessarily bloated, and I struggled to find a comfortable listening volume. This one's almost there - I think the fixes should be pretty minor, but I'd definitely like to hear them addressed before passing this one. Hope you can make the necessary adjustments, lads! NO (resub)

Oh yes, Chuck Rock! One of my all-time favourite VGM sources, 4mat is a genius for creating it, and the Amiga version was my jam back in the day (and imo vastly superior to the Genesis version - just listen to the difference! Interestingly, the arrangement and soloing is different between the versions). When I first discovered OCR in the 2000s, this was one of the first things I searched for. I'm so thrilled you've submitted a remix from the game! Definitely hear the La Grange influence with the opening rhythm guitar. Drums and bass sound great, and the lead guitar has the right tone to it. You've got the ZZ Top sound down, although some of the timing could be tighter. The ending ritardando in particular sounds like the drums and guitar are out of sync. I think it works overall though, as a 'blues jam' vibe. Arrangement-wise, it's very similar to the original, and that's where I'm torn on my vote. On the one hand, it's a fantastic cover of one of my favourite sources, however is it too much of a cover? I'm struggling to hear where the original material is here. I'm not sure slowing down the tempo is transformative enough. The drums are perhaps the most rearranged element on show here. Bass patterns are very similar to the point I didn't notice any difference. There are flourishes of originality at the end of the melodic phrases, however the bulk of it is presented verbatim - right down to the layered leads. On first listen I thought maybe the final solo from 1:57 was original, but it's subtractive from the source (1:13-1:24, and repeated 1:36-1:46 in source). Although subtraction is a valid arrangement technique, I feel in this case, and taking the piece as a whole, it's too much like a cover. I'm so gutted to be saying no to this one, but I sincerely hope you decide to rework it a bit and send it back on over. All it would need would be some original soloing, possibly a creative bridge or two (couple of great examples in the source), even a different break, (or all of the above!) and I'd be more than happy to see this one on the front page. NO (please resub!)

I loved Marble Madness on the Amiga as a kid. It was one of my favourite games, although the closest I got to completing it was bouncing off the goalpost on the Ultimate stage, and falling off the course with 2 seconds to spare. Gutted. This remix is a magnificent homage to the music of the first 2 levels, beginning with tranquility, then moving into more intense territory as those black balls try and bounce you off the track, before soaring synth pads welcome you across the finish line. It'd be right at home in one of those synthwave compilations that are all over YouTube. Indeed, the whole thing is fantastic, but my favourite part is the transition between themes beginning at 2:44 and ending at 3:03. Absolutely beautiful way to blend two sources together in a euphoric finale. No complaints here! YES

The strength of this one is definitely in the arrangement and imagination to take on such a challenging source. The instrumentation is good, although the samples and sound design is a mixed bag in terms of quality. Chunky intro hits are interspersed with some almost cheeky-sounding malleted strings. When the rhythm guitar properly starts chugging at 0:24, it's very static and noticeable how identical each chug is. Some more variation there would go a long way. The rhodes organ sounds very clean in comparison to the narrow, distorted guitar. Strings and synths work together to add more drama, and cover up each other's shortcomings - the lead synth is very basic sounding on its own (cool solo at 2:08 though!). The pace change at 1:44 is super cool, and the bass sounds great there. Percussion is also solid. Really nice transition out of the solo into the next chuggy section with the descending piano. The final section at 3:00 is also handled quite well, although the rhythm guitar is exposed again and sounds worse as it hits higher notes, becoming very tinny. Ending was a bit unexpected, but it works. I think for a metal arrangement, the guitar parts are sadly lacking in their authenticity, but you've done a decent job with what you have to work with. If there was any chance you could record them live, I'm sure the results would be fantastic. That said, there are no glaring flaws that bring this down, and the arrangement is great. YES

This is a tricky one! Getting Streets of Rage vibes here. I think the best part about it is the interesting rhythm, which proph described as 3+3+2, and that seems to be how it feels. The instrumentation is bold, loud, and surprisingly sparse. The percussion too feels very restrained. I was waiting for it to let rip with some crazy drum fills and double-time tom action, hands flying everywhere in a blur of hickory, but no! I suppose I should admire your restraint there, but the energy level of the piece does seem to remain fairly static throughout, and with the sparse instrumentation, I found myself wanting more from it. Disappointing ending. The flute just repeats and then stops at the end of the bar, without a resolving note or anything. Would have been cool to use the synth to end on a solo, or have a drum fill, or... anything at all to make it stand out as the end of the track! The arrangement, while feeling repetitive, doesn't overtly copy-paste any given section, but at the same time it doesn't feel like there's a great deal of intent with the progression; it's hard to know where you are in the track if you jump in at any given moment. I should be clear though, I do like everything that's presented here. I just think that it could use another pass to add the extra details that would push this one over the line. Some more dynamics in terms of energy levels - certainly some more interesting percussion, particularly in the middle/final sections would be great - and a proper ending. NO (resubmit)

Perfect choice of instrumentation here - I love how everything feels like it's underwater, dripping in reverb and resonance. Perhaps the only exception is the string plucks that come in at 1:25 - they sound a bit too clean for me, and could probably have done with some more effects on them to make them more droplet-like. The track's mixing is quite interesting. On the one hand, it definitely sounds like things are underwater. On the other, the section from 3:02 has some very wide-panned bubbly synth arps that seem a little too loud and present in the mix, and are detracting from the main synths that are panned centrally, and sound very distant. When the arpeggiated bass and tambourine is introduced at 3:53, that's also very up-front in the mix, and dominates quite significantly in a way I felt was distracting. The rhythm took me by surprise too, feeling like it could use some more aggressive sidechain to help ease it into the mix. It's a shame the mixing balance is off, as you could really get lost in this one and float away if it was cleaner. All that aside though, it's a compelling take on a fairly difficult source tune. At first, I thought your remix was a little ponderous, however having listened to the source afterwards, I can see how you've stayed true to the original, whilst also adding a ton of extra material and great sound design. YES

Well this is just great. I get whiffs of Dire, Dire Docks with some of the intro, and then it moves into Yazoo territory, before 1:00 where it moves into a pulsating retrowave/vaporwave treat. Totally understand the arrangement and production critiques from my fellow J's on this one. The compression feels too much, the lead synth doesn't have the presence and body I'd be striving for personally, and there could be some more ear candy to flesh out the soundscape in parts. That said, it does nail the retro vibe very well, and the progression is beautiful, wholesome and satisfying. By the end of the piece, I'm totally sold. It's the kind of track that makes me want to hit repeat to experience the journey again, coming from the delicate e-piano to the triumphant chords and warm, fuzzy feeling that bass gives me. Lovely stuff! YES

Sounds excellent, probably a pass on first listen, however delving deeper into the soundtrack and asking a friend who plays the game, I can't find this anywhere in-game either. Will hold off judging in further detail until we get confirmation on whether this can be used as source material.

Cool source tune, I can see what inspired you to do a ReMix in this style. The quiet intro, followed by metal guitar and some synth elements fits it perfectly. It's a great concept! The opening piano is unfortunately far too loose, and the recording has too much noise. As such, it doesn't carry enough emotion and feeling - I'm too distracted by the white noise and timing issues to get really immersed. The whistles sound good though, no problems there. The harpsichord thing in the right ear is too quiet. It's a lacklustre start for what ends up being an epic track. This piece really gets going when the guitar comes in. They sound amazing, although there's a little bit of (unintentional) distortion and popping on the lead when it first comes in (same with the acoustic at the end as well actually - compressor issue?). The drums sound good, crash cymbals are a little quiet though. Love the addition of a synth to switch up the lead. It sounds good, but could do with more body and clarity. The piano break exposes the timing issues again, and the contrast in quality between this and the previous section is quite stark. Some quantisation on the piano is definitely needed at a minimum. The drums also seem super weak here, compared to the previous section, but maybe it's just the timing making me notice them more. The 'Back to the Future' bridge at 3:06 doesn't feel like a natural progression, and the strings don't feel like they belong in this part. The call and response with the synth lacks impact because of the long attack on the strings. Why not use the lead guitar, or a different synth? I'm not entirely sold on this section, but swapping out those strings is a must. The string runs at 3:32 are buried, and don't add much. They could probably be removed, but I'd suggest replacing with a soft synth pad with low attack. 3:35-4:12 is fantastic. If the rest of the track were up to this standard, I'd love it. The ending with the acoustic guitar, woodwinds, and SFX is really nice too. Feels like a natural ending at 4:12 after the guitar solo. I'd be tempted to remove the piano break in the middle, and put this acoustic section in there instead. Overall there's a ton of great material in here. The main points that need addressing are the strings during the middle section, and the piano as a whole. Production-wise, the distortion on the guitars should be removed as well, and although overall clarity is generally good, some improvements would be welcome there too (cymbals, lead synth, harpsichord perhaps). If the noise on the piano recording can't be removed, I'd suggest a re-record on that, or use samples instead. I look forward to hearing this one again though - that guitar is epic! NO (resubmit)

Beautiful intro - the live harp sounds amazing, and the little ambient sounds picked up during recording help make it sound really organic. Live flute is nice, but sounds a little muted compared to the rest of the instrumentation. Maybe a lack of high-end reducing the clarity somewhat. The vocal section was a surprise, and Dawnaria's voice sounds incredible. It's a shame that the opening lines are so clunky, because the vocal tone is so smooth and luscious. The lyrics are such a mouthful: "Though this may be our final fateful night Against endless hordes of relentless mistborn evil blight" In my view, if you're writing lyrics or poetry, especially for music, you need to pay attention to the accented syllables. Takes me back to my English classes learning about iambic pentameter, but in this example, the melody causes the vocalist to accentuate the wrong syllables so it sounds like "Though this may be our final fateful ni-ight", which sounds totally unnatural. Further, the second line is indecipherable given the amount of syllables in there (10 in the first line, 14 in the second - I had to look up the lyrics on YouTube!). When writing lyrics, if you can't get them to sound fluid, just rework them! The most important thing is the flow sounds right. With a bad flow, even if what you're trying to say is important, people won't be able to understand it anyway (just like I didn't in these opening lines). The final section retreads ground from the first couple of minutes, and for some reason the 'woof' sounds got louder/more noticeable. I had to check back to see if they were there before the vocal section! To summarise, it's an extremely strong start, a very good middle section with some dodgy lyrics, and then the final section was ok. Easily good enough to pass, but definitely some points to work on in future. Cheers! YES

While black metal isn't my thing, I do appreciate the work here. In fact, if it weren't for the (almost comically) intense bass drumming, I'd enjoy this one a lot more. The long intro really teases - we get some lovely acoustic guitar with melancholic pads and beautiful chords, and there's a nice bell synth in there as well to augment the melody. The hit and few notes at 2:17 briefly brought to mind "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", but then all thoughts of that slow rock jam were obliterated at 2:45 when the blasting begins! Mixing is excellent throughout, even during those hard bass drum workouts. Ankles of steel right there. The feel of the track overall is melancholic, urgent, and desperate. It's a pretty intense listen, and at over 8 minutes long, it does require being in the mood for it. If you are, though, you're gonna love it. YES

Yeah this is great from an arrangement perspective, just needs some touching up in the mixing. Rhythm guitars sound buzzy and overly distorted. I don't think it's clipping, but the distortion on them is too much for me at that volume. I like the chunkiness though, so hopefully it's just a case of toning down the distortion knob. Snare has some good body to it, but the 1/16ths at 2:19 sound too mechanical. Try turning off the sample cutoff when the sound is retriggered, so it sounds a bit smoother. Or, preferably, choose a snare sound for the fill that sounds a bit more natural when doing a drumroll in this way. Also, rather than ramping up the velocity in a steady way, try simulating a dominant hand and varying the velocity in that way instead. Love the instrumentation, melodies and harmonies at play here, all coming together with a huge energy and vigour. It's almost there, just needs tidying up so everything is clear in the mix. NO (resubmit)

I totally love this one. It's right up my alley. Huge attention to sound design that creates an arresting, absorbing soundscape. The groove is deep and soulful to back it all up and drive the piece forwards with yet more intrigue and mystery. The rumbling bass at 2:03 was a fun addition, and I'm a big fan of incorporating rich synth basses into organic soundscapes like this. Can we also take a moment to appreciate the transformation of the source, from a staccato, folky, jaunty number into... this. Quite a vision, pulled off with aplomb. The live guitar sounds amazing, and the detail in the performance is great. The little slides and harmonics add so much. Unique percussion also goes a long way towards drawing the listener in, and adds replay value on subsequent listens. Minor criticisms could be that the master feels a tad quiet to me - I've turned the volume up about 20% and it sounds a little better, but the mix balance still feels a little bit off. The filtered panflute sound in particular is very quiet when it's playing solo at 1:30. I understand it's a dynamic shift, but for me it's still too quiet there. The bass, while a great addition, could have used a bit of filtering in the mids to help it sit within the mix better. Also (this is for Larry) the end cuts off prematurely before the last note has decayed all the way. Any chance we can get a new mixdown? I've listened a good 5 or 6 times now, still not bored of it. Great work all round, get this on the front page! YES

My vote remains the same because my reasoning was that the vocals and the music sound too much like they're competing, not working with each other. The examples I cited in my review served to back up my opinion, so unfortunately it's still a NO from me.

Interesting source tune, and I like how you've approached translating the time signature to work with trance. Intro sounds great. The sound design is a bit vanilla, but the pumping bass and filtered arp with delay on it set up a good atmosphere. Rad timbale licks... check Cool break at 1:05, very airy and the synth choice works well for it. Some light sidechaining might have been useful here, to help the listener keep time without a kick to anchor them. Not sure what those 4 trumpet notes are doing 2:06-2:08, they sound really out of place with the whole soundscape and mix. Things get quite busy with the delay and reverb until a reset at 2:27, before we get noodle soup and then a fade out, with the track seemingly unfinished/unresolved. It's a mix of two halves for me. The first 2 minutes or so tell a good story with a coherent structure. The last half feels like you were rushing a bit to finish it for the compo. I'd say revisit this one and put the same care into the back half as the first, with attention paid to the structure, builds, payoffs and a better ending. Not there just yet, but I would like to hear it back again. NO (resubmit)

The rich harmonies and performances sound great! I hear the odd pitch-shifting artefact to tidy things up, but that's no big deal. Amazing vision to arrange something like this! The elephant in the room, though, is the source recognisability. From our standards: Although the source is definitely in there somewhere, I'd argue the amount of effort taken to decipher it does indeed modify it beyond recognition. Speeding up the ReMix in my DAW I can hear snippets of the melody, but if the lyrics weren't explicitly saying 'Paper Mario', I'd have no clue what this was. Shame to have to reject this one on those grounds, but it's a NO

OK I've listened to this 4 or 5 times now, and I really like it. I think it's a great example of how to make a game music ReMix with some fairly basic techniques and loops and, with some decent production, make it sound cohesive and catchy. First off, the source tune is short, but I love the way you've achieved the syncopated effect when the groove hits at 0:36 to give the track some real bounce. Good choice of drum loop, and although the percussion is largely loops with some cymbal hits and ins/outs, it reminds me of my early remixing days, and is effective. Nothing wrong with doing the basics well! I hear the arrangement critiques, and while I agree that more could have been made of this, the syncopation, break, and key change are all arrangement decisions. On top of that, the ReMix is short and sweet, nothing feels like it's dragging on or overused, and although it left me wanting more, it's a satisfying package. There are loads of things that I'd have done differently, but judging what's in front of me, I'd have to say that this one gets a pass. YES